Merry Christmas All !!
 

On 12/26/2013 8:11 AM, KC wrote:
On 12/26/2013 7:55 AM, wrote:
On Wednesday, December 25, 2013 10:49:39 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 22:17:11 -0500, KC wrote:



On 12/25/2013 9:27 PM, wrote:

On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 05:11:56 -0500, Poco Loco

wrote:



Leaving to go watch grandkids open presents!



Hope ALL of you have a super Christmas and find the joy and peace
that comes with the season. Don't

forget to give the Salvation Army collection man/lady a few bucks
to get themselves a nice dinner

somewhere. Oh, and put some money in the bucket too!



Thanks

I hope everyone had a great Christmas.

The kids were all here and we had lots of fun, ate too much and

engaged in the total commitment to stimulate the economy.

The wrapping paper alone would heat the house of a 3d worlder for a

couple days.

Watta country!

70s and sunny so we got out for an evening boat ride after the kids

left



http://gfretwell.com/ftp/Christmas%20sunset%2013.jpg





Nice... spent the day with my girls, got a flux core, wire feed, welder

so I guess it's time for me and Jess to learn a new art:)



I have a little Lincoln 100a (used/free from a friend) but I still

have not done a lot with it. I played with it a little and it crapped

out. Something went wrong in the wire guide of the lead. I never took

the time to get the wire free. I think that is why I ended up with it.

I keep promising myself I am going to buy the MIG conversion kit that

replaces all of that stuff along with a gas feed but I haven't seen

the need yet. I still have my old stick box.

I really want a TIG.

I have a Hobart 180. It'll do flux core or gas, and while flux core
does the job, the gas is much cleaner with better results. With gas
you do need to be indoors or in calm wind.

Squirting wire (MIG) is pretty easy to learn. My understanding is
that TIG has a much steeper learning curve.


Yeah, that's where they told me to start. Jess and I have a bud across
town who is a welder by trade, said to call him as soon as I get a
machine and he will head over to start the lessons:) I already have a
couple projects in the works.


TIG welding is an art form to me. I learned to use both TIG and MIG
welders, although my welds look horrible compared to the highly skilled
and certified welders I've known over the years.

In the business I was in, the large (up to 120" square) vacuum chambers
are constructed of half-inch thick (or thicker) stainless steel plate.
The welds required for vacuum integrity all have to be TIG welded to
ensure 100 percent root penetration to eliminate any microscopic voids
or cracks. You could hold liquids with no problem with these
microscopic cracks because the molecules in the liquid are larger than
the cracks ... therefore no leakage. But to many gases in the
atmosphere the same crack looks like the Grand Canyon.

We put "stiffeners" on the chambers to add the required wall strength to
withstand a 14.7 psi pressure delta. A 60" square chamber under vacuum
has about 26 tons of force per side trying to crush it like a tin can.
Those welds were structural only and therefore could be MIG welded.

Watching the quality of the "bead" that some of the welders could lay
down over a long distance was amazing. Tedious work, but critical to
the vacuum integrity of the chamber.

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:55:28 AM UTC-5, Mr. Luddite wrote:


TIG welding is an art form to me. I learned to use both TIG and MIG
welders, although my welds look horrible compared to the highly skilled
and certified welders I've known over the years.

Absolutely! I'm just a hobby welder... I can stick metal together, but it's not always very pretty. Just like a good golf shot, occasionally I'll lay down some good puddles, but then right next to it I'll create something ugly. A friend who's a metal artist and a good MIG/TIG welder told me that's what grinders are made for. :-)

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On 12/26/2013 10:22 AM, wrote:
On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:55:28 AM UTC-5, Mr. Luddite wrote:


TIG welding is an art form to me. I learned to use both TIG and MIG
welders, although my welds look horrible compared to the highly skilled
and certified welders I've known over the years.

A friend who's a metal artist and a good MIG/TIG welder told me that's what grinders are made for. :-)


Good point, I will remember that.

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:11:53 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:

Yeah, that's where they told me to start. Jess and I have a bud across
town who is a welder by trade, said to call him as soon as I get a
machine and he will head over to start the lessons:) I already have a
couple projects in the works.

Get some scrap metal and practice! Since my first project was (and still is) some auto body work, I went by a friends body shop and got some body panels that were pulled from wrecks. Cut a chunk out, weld it back in, repeat.. Tough to do at first without blowing holes through it. Figured out later that thicker metal is easier to weld, you just have to worry about getting enough penetration instead of too much.

Get a decent quality welding helmet. Gotta protect those eyes.

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On 12/26/2013 10:29 AM, wrote:
On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:11:53 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:

Yeah, that's where they told me to start. Jess and I have a bud across
town who is a welder by trade, said to call him as soon as I get a
machine and he will head over to start the lessons:) I already have a
couple projects in the works.

Get some scrap metal and practice! Since my first project was (and still is) some auto body work, I went by a friends body shop and got some body panels that were pulled from wrecks. Cut a chunk out, weld it back in, repeat. Tough to do at first without blowing holes through it. Figured out later that thicker metal is easier to weld, you just have to worry about getting enough penetration instead of too much.

Get a decent quality welding helmet. Gotta protect those eyes.


That is an issue. They got me a number 5 lens on goggles but I can still
see through them indoors and that concernes me.

I was looking at a couple of the auto tint helmets at Harbor Freight and
it says they change in 1/25000 of a second... that scares me too.

Any input from you all on helmets and what is a "decent quality" welding
helmet... If you got a minute, maybe show me a link to one you would use
(if you were on a tight budget like me:)...? Thanks.

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Thursday, December 26, 2013 10:42:28 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:
On 12/26/2013 10:29 AM, wrote:

On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:11:53 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:



Yeah, that's where they told me to start. Jess and I have a bud across

town who is a welder by trade, said to call him as soon as I get a

machine and he will head over to start the lessons:) I already have a

couple projects in the works.



Get some scrap metal and practice! Since my first project was (and still is) some auto body work, I went by a friends body shop and got some body panels that were pulled from wrecks. Cut a chunk out, weld it back in, repeat. Tough to do at first without blowing holes through it. Figured out later that thicker metal is easier to weld, you just have to worry about getting enough penetration instead of too much.



Get a decent quality welding helmet. Gotta protect those eyes.





That is an issue. They got me a number 5 lens on goggles but I can still

see through them indoors and that concernes me.



I was looking at a couple of the auto tint helmets at Harbor Freight and

it says they change in 1/25000 of a second... that scares me too.



Any input from you all on helmets and what is a "decent quality" welding

helmet... If you got a minute, maybe show me a link to one you would use

(if you were on a tight budget like me:)...? Thanks.

Personally, I'd stay away from the Harbor Freight helmets. Their stuff tends to be very cheaply made, and while I'd consider buying something there that I would only use a couple of times, if it's something that I want to keep and use for a long time (like my eyes) I buy the best I can.

A decent helmet would be somthing like this:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...1185_200591185

Name brand with some reputation of queality. A Lincoln would be good, too. You can spend a lot more for professional stuff (for people using them 8 hours a day!), but for occasional hobby use these are good.

Don't worry about the switching time. Even 1/12,000 of a second is fine, again, for hobby use. If you were welding for hours on end, you'd want faster or a permanent tint lense.

That's my advice. Check with your pro welder buddy. I think he'll steer you away from HF, too.

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On 12/26/2013 11:05 AM, wrote:
On Thursday, December 26, 2013 10:42:28 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:
On 12/26/2013 10:29 AM, wrote:

On Thursday, December 26, 2013 8:11:53 AM UTC-5, KC wrote:



Yeah, that's where they told me to start. Jess and I have a bud across

town who is a welder by trade, said to call him as soon as I get a

machine and he will head over to start the lessons:) I already have a

couple projects in the works.



Get some scrap metal and practice! Since my first project was (and still is) some auto body work, I went by a friends body shop and got some body panels that were pulled from wrecks. Cut a chunk out, weld it back in, repeat. Tough to do at first without blowing holes through it. Figured out later that thicker metal is easier to weld, you just have to worry about getting enough penetration instead of too much.



Get a decent quality welding helmet. Gotta protect those eyes.





That is an issue. They got me a number 5 lens on goggles but I can still

see through them indoors and that concernes me.



I was looking at a couple of the auto tint helmets at Harbor Freight and

it says they change in 1/25000 of a second... that scares me too.



Any input from you all on helmets and what is a "decent quality" welding

helmet... If you got a minute, maybe show me a link to one you would use

(if you were on a tight budget like me:)...? Thanks.

Personally, I'd stay away from the Harbor Freight helmets. Their stuff tends to be very cheaply made, and while I'd consider buying something there that I would only use a couple of times, if it's something that I want to keep and use for a long time (like my eyes) I buy the best I can.

A decent helmet would be somthing like this:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...1185_200591185

Name brand with some reputation of queality. A Lincoln would be good, too. You can spend a lot more for professional stuff (for people using them 8 hours a day!), but for occasional hobby use these are good.

Don't worry about the switching time. Even 1/12,000 of a second is fine, again, for hobby use. If you were welding for hours on end, you'd want faster or a permanent tint lense.

That's my advice. Check with your pro welder buddy. I think he'll steer you away from HF, too.


Thanks... I won't buy the HF one... Still, I have a hobart goggles with
permanent lens and it says #5... I am not sure what "#5" lens signifies?
Could of course Google, but if you got a quick
explanation/reccomendation, go with it? The hobarts I got allow for lens
changes...

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 15:32:35 -0500, Hank© wrote:

On 12/25/2013 5:11 AM, Poco Loco wrote:
Leaving to go watch grandkids open presents!

Hope ALL of you have a super Christmas and find the joy and peace that comes with the season. Don't
forget to give the Salvation Army collection man/lady a few bucks to get themselves a nice dinner
somewhere. Oh, and put some money in the bucket too!

Don't forget to wish Jesus happy birthday.

Done. Christmas Eve candlelight service. Very nice, lots of singing, nice sermon.
--

Have a Blessed Chrismahanukwanzakah and a Spectacular New Year!

John H

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 21:27:38 -0500, wrote:

On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 05:11:56 -0500, Poco Loco
wrote:

Leaving to go watch grandkids open presents!

Hope ALL of you have a super Christmas and find the joy and peace that comes with the season. Don't
forget to give the Salvation Army collection man/lady a few bucks to get themselves a nice dinner
somewhere. Oh, and put some money in the bucket too!

Thanks
I hope everyone had a great Christmas.
The kids were all here and we had lots of fun, ate too much and
engaged in the total commitment to stimulate the economy.
The wrapping paper alone would heat the house of a 3d worlder for a
couple days.
Watta country!
70s and sunny so we got out for an evening boat ride after the kids
left

http://gfretwell.com/ftp/Christmas%20sunset%2013.jpg

Our kids and grandkids are all coming later today. Open presents and then eat. I'm cheating, cooking
only spaghetti and garlic bread and salad (brought by daughter). Kids'll love it though.
--

Have a Blessed Chrismahanukwanzakah and a Spectacular New Year!

John H

Merry Christmas All !!
 

On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 22:06:09 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

On 12/25/2013 9:27 PM, wrote:
On Wed, 25 Dec 2013 05:11:56 -0500, Poco Loco
wrote:

Leaving to go watch grandkids open presents!

Hope ALL of you have a super Christmas and find the joy and peace that comes with the season. Don't
forget to give the Salvation Army collection man/lady a few bucks to get themselves a nice dinner
somewhere. Oh, and put some money in the bucket too!

Thanks
I hope everyone had a great Christmas.
The kids were all here and we had lots of fun, ate too much and
engaged in the total commitment to stimulate the economy.
The wrapping paper alone would heat the house of a 3d worlder for a
couple days.
Watta country!
70s and sunny so we got out for an evening boat ride after the kids
left

http://gfretwell.com/ftp/Christmas%20sunset%2013.jpg



Christmas was a bit of a downer, especially for Mrs.E. this year for
several reasons. Five of our seven grandkids all live either in SC or
FL, so the only two left up here are my daughter's two boys, aged 17 and
14. Mrs.E., being the typical Italian grandma, really missed having all
the "little ones" around for the first time in our married years and it
showed.

I was able to get Skype installed and running on her 27" iMac, so she
spent about an hour talking and watching my older son's family in SC and
seeing his two older daughters and 2 year old twins (boy and girl)
witnessing the magic of Santa Clause.

We talked later and I realized it's been tough on her. She misses
seeing all the kids, plus her father passed away at the end of November
and then my mother went two weeks later, so the whole pre-Christmas
season has been filled with funerals and burials.

Hopefully we can just chalk it up to a "bad year" and those in the
future will be much better. Maybe I can finally convince her that we
should sell this place, get rid of the horses and move where it's warm
and closer to the rest of the family!



How does the rest of the family get their presents from you folks? My rule is pretty simple - if you
want your gifts, you gotta come here to get them!
--

Have a Blessed Chrismahanukwanzakah and a Spectacular New Year!

John H